YOUR ASSIGNMENT 

 As a child of God you are where you are, family, work, church, institution or location on purpose.  God has a purpose and work for you wherever He places you because He orders the steps of the righteous (Psalms 37:23). It is important, therefore, to prayerfully desire to and discover your assignment. The question, “why am I here?” is an important one as we seek God from time to time because divine assignments may be apparent but not obvious. Today we focus on the book of Esther to learn about our assignments.  

It is called Purim, a celebration which for most of Israel begins at sunset March 2 and ends at nightfall March 3. Purim commemorates the rescue of the children of Israel from impending annihilation by decree of the Medo-Persian King Xerxes during the Babylonian exile. A man name Haman described as “most powerful official in the empire” had made the King issue this decree to kill all Jews occasioned by the fact that Mordecai, a Jewish palace official had, unlike all other officials, refused to bow to this powerful figure in the empire. Haman obtained this decree and, “ Dispatches were sent by swift messengers into all the provinces of the empire, giving the order that all Jews—young and old, including women and children—must be killed, slaughtered, and annihilated on a single day. This was scheduled to happen on March 7 of the next year. The property of the Jews would be given to those who killed them” (Esther 3:13, NLT). 

Upon learning about the decree, Mordecai decided to act to save himself and his people by requesting his cousin and adopted daughter, Esther, now queen to act. 

“Don’t think for a moment that because you’re in the palace you will escape when all other Jews are killed. 14 If you keep quiet at a time like this, deliverance and relief for the Jews will arise from some other place, but you and your relatives will die. Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?” (Esther 4:13, 14, NLT).  

Note that in this message Mordecai points out to Esther the dangers of not acting, both to herself and her people. Though she doesn’t mention God here, Mordecai indicates that sovereignly there will be deliverance of God’s people even if she doesn’t act. However, he also notifies her that this could be a moment of destiny, maybe it is for this assignment that she became the queen. We know that in the end Esther acts and rescues the people of God! What lessons do we learn from the story?                                       

        i.            There is God’s plan and purpose, the reason you are where you are 

      ii.            There’s time you must act, God, heaven is counting on you—"who knows, may be you were made…for a time such as this?”

    iii.            God has chosen you, but He can use others—" deliverance and relief for the Jews will arise from some other place”

     iv.            His plans are not about saving helping others but for your good—" Don’t think for a moment that because you’re in the palace you will escape”

      v.            We see the centrality of prayer in the fulfillment of our assignment—both Esther and Mordecai fasted, Esther asked the people to fast for 3 days. 

     vi.            It is important to seek God to direct your choices of movement and relocation 

Lord, help me to discover my assignment and to be faithful to act when I must!

Melphon Mayaka